THE ESTERNE BRUNER MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIPS:
KEEPING IMPOVERISHED CHILDREN IN LOCAL SCHOOLS AND AT HOME - Year #1: Sept. 2010 - June 2011 170 full scholarships (supplies and tuition)--$250-- Grand Ravine, Port-au-Prince, Haiti, 5 different schools, interfaith including Catholic, St. Mary Magdalene.
KEEPING IMPOVERISHED CHILDREN IN LOCAL SCHOOLS AND AT HOME - Year #1: Sept. 2010 - June 2011 170 full scholarships (supplies and tuition)--$250-- Grand Ravine, Port-au-Prince, Haiti, 5 different schools, interfaith including Catholic, St. Mary Magdalene.
THE GRAN RAVINE COMMUNITY HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL - GR/CHRC was formed in Aug. 2005 in the wake of politically motivated massacres and house burnings after Pres. Jean-Bertrand Aristide, first democratically elected president of Haiti was removed by the United States and other countries. With free legal assistance from AUMOHD (Haitian) and HURAH, Inc. (US ) these non-violent, non-partisan citizens began advocating for basic human rights for their community.
In spite of further massive violence in 2006, the brutal murder of #2 Pres. Esterne Bruner, the GR/CHRC has continued with #3 President Frantzco Joseph (middle, 5th from left) and #4 President Jean-Ernest Point-du-Jour (picture 2nd from left).
With the help of Seton Hall University Law School and Haitian Attorney, Evel Fanfan, the GR/CHRC has lodged a complaint against the Government of Haiti with the Interamerican Human Rights Commission for reparations to cover the damages of '05, '06. Justice is slow but these citizens are determined to raise their community above violence and party politics to a level of basic human rights.
The GR/CHRC in 2009 called for a scholarship program for their most impoverished children as the most important need even after the earthquake of Jan. 2010. More than 500 students applied. Thus Hope For Haiti: Education-HHE, began in Sept. '10, 2010 funded by the St. Columba Haiti Ministry with 170 children. In year 3 we had to reduce our scholarships to 100.
President Point-du-Jour visited the Hope For Haiti: Education (HHE) project in May 2013 (see section "Year 3" ) and received a commemorative plaque naming the HHE project, The Esterne Bruner Scholarship Program. See slide show below to see pictures orienting supporters to Haiti and Grand Ravine with its history.f
In year #9, 2018-2019 due to violence and lower funding, HHE had to end the original program. HHE, a Catholic Church project, revised its scholarship program to St. Mary Magdalene Classical Center, one of the original schools with 50 students (up from 20 from the beginning). A donor arrived then and began supporting 18 students at the St. Bernadette school--the parish school that originally supported HHE beginning in 2010. That program is now in its 5th year.
In spite of further massive violence in 2006, the brutal murder of #2 Pres. Esterne Bruner, the GR/CHRC has continued with #3 President Frantzco Joseph (middle, 5th from left) and #4 President Jean-Ernest Point-du-Jour (picture 2nd from left).
With the help of Seton Hall University Law School and Haitian Attorney, Evel Fanfan, the GR/CHRC has lodged a complaint against the Government of Haiti with the Interamerican Human Rights Commission for reparations to cover the damages of '05, '06. Justice is slow but these citizens are determined to raise their community above violence and party politics to a level of basic human rights.
The GR/CHRC in 2009 called for a scholarship program for their most impoverished children as the most important need even after the earthquake of Jan. 2010. More than 500 students applied. Thus Hope For Haiti: Education-HHE, began in Sept. '10, 2010 funded by the St. Columba Haiti Ministry with 170 children. In year 3 we had to reduce our scholarships to 100.
President Point-du-Jour visited the Hope For Haiti: Education (HHE) project in May 2013 (see section "Year 3" ) and received a commemorative plaque naming the HHE project, The Esterne Bruner Scholarship Program. See slide show below to see pictures orienting supporters to Haiti and Grand Ravine with its history.f
In year #9, 2018-2019 due to violence and lower funding, HHE had to end the original program. HHE, a Catholic Church project, revised its scholarship program to St. Mary Magdalene Classical Center, one of the original schools with 50 students (up from 20 from the beginning). A donor arrived then and began supporting 18 students at the St. Bernadette school--the parish school that originally supported HHE beginning in 2010. That program is now in its 5th year.